GM executive: Electric pickup will be built on EV-specific platform

Future Cadillac long-range electric large luxury utility vehicle (rendering), 2019 Detroit auto shoGeneral Motors president Mark Reuss confirmed Thursday that the company has an all-electric pickup in development and says it will be based on the company's BEV3 platform, expected to debut in a new Cadillac SUV sometime after 2023. That chassis will be similar to the "skateboard" chassis that GM developed for its Autonomy concept car back in...

Climate change presents $1 trillion in risk, but more in reward: study

Ocean waves [CREDIT: Global Climate Budget 2018]The latest climate study, released Tuesday, doesn't look at sea level rise, carbon counts, or government policy—at least not directly. Instead, it takes a strictly capitalist approach. The study, by CDP, sent questionnaires to more than 200 of the largest global companies about their forecasts for how much money they're budgeting to lose to...

Subaru and Toyota plan joint electric SUVs on flexible platform

2019 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid  -  First Drive, Santa Barbara CA, Nov. 2019What comes next after a partnership for sports cars? Potentially one for an electric SUV. That's the latest plan from Toyota and Subaru, according to a joint statement from the automakers on Thursday. The new joint project will develop a new electric mid-size SUV using electric-car technology from Toyota and all-wheel drive technology from Subaru...

Automakers lay out mpg concerns for Trump: Talk to California, please

President Donald Trump (Photo courtesy Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons)Ten months after the U.S. EPA and DOT proposed easing federal fleet fuel economy standards for 2021-2026, there has been no formal submission of the plan. And more than a year after the EPA suggested that it might challenge California’s waiver to set stricter standards, it hasn’t confirmed one way or another whether it will do that. As...

Automakers lay out mpg concerns for Trump: Talk to California, please

President Donald Trump (Photo courtesy Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons)Ten months after the U.S. EPA and DOT proposed easing federal fleet fuel economy standards for 2021-2026, there has been no formal submission of the plan. And more than a year after the EPA suggested that it might challenge California’s waiver to set stricter standards, it hasn’t confirmed one way or another whether it will do that. As...

Fiat Chrysler withdraws merger offer to Renault after Nissan balks

2017 Fiat 500eA potential merger between Fiat Chrysler and Renault, which would have involved Japanese partners Nissan and Mitsubishi, is off the table. Fiat Chrysler withdrew the offer after Nissan, Renault's larger but junior partner withheld its support. A report in trade journal Automotive News (subscription required), noted that Nissan representatives...

Karma to expand dealerships to 13 US cities, 19 countries by year-end

Karma SC1 Vision Concept  -  2019 Shanghai auto showKarma, the company, is starting its effort in earnest to revive sales of its Revero—the car that started life as the ill-fated Fisker Karma. According to the federal government, Karma sold 231 of the cars in 2018, well down from the 2,667 that Fisker sold in the car's first year on the market. That's partly the result of a paucity of...